An image forming apparatus, comprising:
- a conveying unit configured to convey a recording material toward an image forming position;
- an image forming unit configured to form an image on the recording material conveyed by the conveying unit at the image forming position in response to an image signal output from an output unit;
- a first acquisition unit configured to acquire a length of the recording material in a conveyance direction of the recording material conveyed by the conveying unit;
- a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a length of an output period of the image signal for the recording material;
- wherein the conveying unit conveys a plurality of recording materials including a first recording material and a second recording material, and the second recording material is conveyed after the first recording material is conveyed, and
- wherein the image forming apparatus further comprises a control unit configured to determine a timing at which an image signal for the second recording material is output from the output unit based on a timing corresponding to a length of the first recording material in the conveyance direction acquired by the first acquisition unit and a timing corresponding to a length of an output period of an image signal for the first recording material acquired by the second acquisition unit,
- wherein in a case that the timing corresponding to the length of the output period of the image signal for the first recording material is earlier than the timing corresponding to the length of the first recording material in the conveyance direction, the control unit determines the timing at which the image signal for the second recording material is output from the output unit based on the timing corresponding to the length of the first recording material in the conveyance direction,
- wherein in a case that the timing corresponding to the length of the output period of the image signal for the first recording material is later than the timing corresponding to the length of the first recording material in the conveyance direction, the control unit determines the timing at which the image signal for the second recording material is output from the output unit based on the timing corresponding to the length of the output period of the image signal for the first recording material, and
- wherein the control unit determines the timing corresponding to the length of the output period of the image signal for the first recording material by summing up the length of the output period of the image signal for the first recording material acquired by the second acquisition unit and a length of a margin period necessary for the output unit to start outputting an image signal for a recording material following the first recording material, wherein the margin period is such that the image signal is not output from the output unit during the margin period.